What are Neurodevelopmental Disorders?
Neurodevelopmental disorders are usually diagnosed early on in infancy, childhood or adolescence and induce deficits which produce an impairment of function. In other words, neurodevelopmental disorders are caused when the brain or nervous system is impaired during early development. Examples of Neurodevelopmental disorders in children can included ADHD, autism, schizophrenia, learning disabilities and other speech and language disorders.
Common Signs and Symptoms :
The symptoms between these disorders can vary significantly based on the area impaired or not fully developed. In individuals with Schizophrenia some of the symptoms that might arise are a withdrawal from friends and family, disorganized thoughts, delusions, and hallucinations. For ADHD the symptoms are inattention, distractibility, impulsivity and hyperactivity. Autistic individuals show little to no eye contact, have difficulty communicating, resist touch and might self-harm. As seen, each Neurodevelopmental disorder is unique in their symptoms. Being able to understand the specific disorder it is helpful in understanding why an individual shows certain behavior and how to correct them.
Common Behaviors Observed:
While every case is unique many disorders share similar behaviors that need work on. The common behaviors observed are emotional regulation, and higher functioning. Emotional regulation refers to the ability to understand and properly express one’s own emotions without inflicting damage to themselves or others. A common problem heard by the families of children with developmental disorders are emotional outbursts that are sudden and while at the moment the individual might act very erratic they often feel remorse afterwards for their behavior. It is important for families to work closely with their children to help them be aware as well as understand how to process their feeling which is able to be accomplished through exercises and therapy that rewires and restructures their brain to be fully equipped to handle, the world they are living in. Higher Functioning refers to the ability of understanding how our brain’s foundation impacts things such as our posture, balance, vestibular function, eye movements and higher cortical functioning and reasoning.
Therapies:
After thoroughly understanding the varying developmental disorders as well as their symptoms and commonly observed behaviors it is logical to be stuck wondering how to help your loved one. At NorCal brain center we have various therapies that work on the common behaviors which ultimately diminish the number of symptoms observed. Some of the therapies largely target higher functioning tasks such as posture, balance, and eye movement. After an initial diagnostic we can design a custom plan that will address all concerns.
